No, Your Car Isn’t Getting a 'Kill Switch' in 2027

There’s a lot of misinformation about car privacy and surveillance. Consumer Reports' experts explain the rule, the technology, and future tech.

Keith Barry, Consumer Reports Senior Autos Reporter.

By Keith Barry
Senior Autos Reporter

July 15, 2026

Buzzed driver — Many new cars today monitor the driver for attentiveness. In the future, there may be technology to detect alcohol impairment.

You may have come across social media posts warning about a government-mandated “kill switch” that’s supposedly coming to new cars sold in the U.S. in 2027. Some posts mention “section 24220” and ominously tell shoppers they should purchase a car before the law goes into effect.

There are laws on the books regarding drunk-driver detection technology, and there are real concerns about automotive privacy. However, there is also a lot of misinformation out there. As a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization, Consumer Reports has both automotive safety and privacy experts who can help explain what’s happening and debunk some of the myths.

“The bottom line is that 2027 model year cars are not going to have any mandatory technology that can determine if you’re intoxicated, and there’s no such thing as a government-controlled ‘kill switch,’” says Emily A. Thomas, PhD, associate director of safety at Consumer Reports’ auto test center.

Thomas says that these social media posts are likely conflating a few ongoing efforts:

• The HALT Drunk Driving Act, signed into law in 2021, does direct federal regulators to require the installation of passive and effective drunk driver detection systems in new vehicles that can “prevent or limit motor vehicle operation if an impairment is detected.”

• However, as of 2026, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has yet to create a standard or issue a final rule for this technology, and has told Congress that there is no commercially available driver alcohol impairment detection system that meets the requirements of the law and is ready to be installed in vehicles.

• While Congress can create a law telling NHTSA to make sure cars have a feature by a certain date, the feature typically is not required until NHTSA actually issues a final rule.

• Some cars already have direct driver monitoring systems (DDMS) that use infrared cameras and head- and/or eye-tracking technology that require drivers to keep their eyes on the road while active driving assistance (ADA) systems are steering, accelerating, and braking. DDMS is now mandatory in new vehicles sold in Europe, but not in the U.S.

Recent concerns about vehicle privacy have drivers rightfully concerned about data collection. At the same time, drunk-driving crashes killed 11,904 people on U.S. roadways—more than 30 percent of all traffic fatalities—in 2024, according to NHTSA. Distracted driving remains a concern as well.

“We believe driver-attention technology can help save lives and be deployed in a privacy-protective manner,” says Justin Brookman, director of privacy and technology policy at Consumer Reports.

2024 Tesla Cybertruck driver monitoring camera — A driver monitoring camera, fitted above the rearview mirror, on the Tesla Cybertruck purchased by Consumer Reports for our vehicle test program.

What Is the HALT Drunk Driving Act?

The HALT Drunk Driving Act is bipartisan legislation that was enacted in 2021 as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. It directed NHTSA to create a new federal motor vehicle safety standard by 2024 requiring technology in new passenger vehicles to passively monitor a driver’s performance or blood alcohol level for potential impairment. The technology would need to prevent or limit motor vehicle operation if impairment or a blood-alcohol concentration above the federal legal limit is detected. The law gave NHTSA the possibility of an additional three-year extension, which would move the deadline for a final standard to Nov. 15, 2027.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, an independent safety research group funded by the insurance industry, also says it has plans to incorporate impairment technology into its testing protocol in the future.

However, despite research and development by private-sector companies, NHTSA has warned that passive detection technology that can analyze a driver’s skin or breath without requiring them to use a specific device to determine whether they are over the legal limit isn’t yet ready for commercial use.

“Even a 99.9 percent detection accuracy level could result in millions to tens of millions of instances each year where the technology would incorrectly prevent or limit drivers from operating their vehicles, or fail to prevent or limit impaired drivers from doing so,” the agency told Congress in February. “At this time, NHTSA is not aware of any technology that claims to achieve anywhere close to this level of accuracy.”

As such, NHTSA has yet to develop a standard test protocol for a passive drunk-driving detection system, let alone make a rule that automakers would have to follow.

What About the Cameras That Are Already In Cars?

In an effort to prevent distracted driving, many new vehicles already feature DDMS technology that alerts a driver to pay attention if it detects that their eyes aren’t on the road. Some newer vehicles can automatically slow down or even pull over if a driver is unresponsive. A few manufacturers of DDMS setups say that their existing systems can detect intoxication and that those features will be built into several models from Japanese manufacturers.

Increasing Privacy Concerns

Concerns about vehicle privacy have increased since reports of automakers collecting and selling customers’ driving data without their knowledge or permission. Some drivers even saw their insurance premiums increase as a result.

In addition, it can be difficult for consumers to opt out of data sharing and collection. Even if they can navigate the maze of menu options and policies, they may find that certain features are disabled if they opt out of data sharing. These features can include roadside assistance, automatic crash detection, or the active driving assistance system itself. This is true even if you’ve paid for these extras.

To combat this issue, Consumer Reports is working to pass stronger privacy laws and petition automakers not to sell your data.

“We worry that if privacy isn’t accounted for, people won’t trust these driver attention systems and will either be deterred from buying vehicles that incorporate them or try to defeat them,” says Brookman.

Keith Barry

Keith Barry has been an auto reporter at Consumer Reports since 2018. He focuses on safety, technology, and the environmental impact of cars. Previously, he led home and appliance coverage at Reviewed; reported on cars for USA Today, Wired, and Car & Driver; and wrote for other publications as well. Keith earned a master’s degree in public health from Tufts University. Follow him on BlueSky @itskeithbarry.bsky.social.